Not... Paints?!

I thought I'd write about an art-related experience I had today. I'm taking an art class, and we are working on these inventory projects. For the last two, I've used a similar style. Today, I sat down and tried to do the next one in the same style, and couldn't do it. I was over-thinking it, bored of it, and not enjoying it at all. So I said to myself "screw it, I'll do something different," and just kind of played around. This is a "line" inventory and it is about the illusion of space/ depth.

I kind of just went at it... and I started to think about planning while I was doing it. I realize, to a certain extent, I resent planning when it comes to making art. The pieces I do rarely come out "as planned," in fact I don't think I've ever really planned something out entirely; there are always pleasant surprises, a process of negotiation, and I've found it's easier to just go with it than to try to fight against it. Planning beyond a certain point feels counter-productive (I don't want to be totally unprepared). If it's all perfectly planned, I'm not playing around anymore, and I tend to find I like my results much more when I'm playing around. If I plan it out, I know what I am going to do - I'm only going to do what I think I should do. If it's partially unplanned, I have no idea what could happen (I don't even know what I'm going to do), and I've found I like that. I like seeing what happens. Is there any reason to value a "planned" piece of art more highly than an "unplanned" one?

Maybe I'll post some more of my class projects on here in the future, at least if it really catches me. This one I just really enjoyed.